The OG Store – Organically Grown Store Providing Healthy, Safe Produce to the Caribbean community

BY SIMONE J. SMITH

The OG store has top quality fresh produce. Excellent customer service and deliveries are always on time. Nikita is a pleasure to deal with. André Miranda, Scarborough Ontario

You are walking through the produce isles, and you notice a section labelled “Organic.” For some, unsure of what organic is, walk by and go to the brands that they know. This is completely normal, but as of the early 2000’s, consumers began to make the connection between their diet, their health, and the environment. People are turning to clean labels and are demanding transparency in the foods they eat and the beverages they drink. Right now, organic foods are ideally positioned to address the concerns of consumers, and our energetic, and delightful business feature is stepping in to help her community.

I had the opportunity to sit down with Nikita Young, the founder of The OG Store, also known as the Organically Grown Store. Before I sat with her, I had a chance to visit her website https://www.shoptheogstore.com/. I was very impressed with the variety that she had to offer. From fresh fruit to organic snacks, even organic meat, The OG store website had a wide selection of choices for even the pickiest shopper.

I learned some things about consumers during my research and sharing this information with you will allow you to see where you fall, and how your consumer style affects how you shop for food. There was a study done by the Hartman Group in 2009 that determined three organic consumers:

• Periphery consumers. They make up 14% of organic consumers, and are individuals who are starting to lean towards organics, but have not committed to buying organic products
• Mid-level organic consumers. They make up 65% of organic consumers, and they are individuals who are not actively buying organic foods
• Core consumers. This relatively small group of people (21%) are people who have made organic foods are part of their lifestyle.

Nikita shared with me that education, health, finances, culture, advocacy, and environmental issues shape how people think about their food.

“The OG Store,” I queried. “Interesting name.”

“Yes,” Nikita replied, “It stands for Organically Grown Store, but I will confess,” she laughs, “It is also because there is a little hood in me. I was raised in Malton after all. This began for me three years ago. There were three of us: myself, my boyfriend and his friend. It was a co-operative idea and that is why I was interested in getting involved. Right away I started looking for organic wholesalers so that I could provide food for the community. I was also really interested in learning more and sharing my knowledge with others. Sustainability is an important concept, especially during times like this.”

The American Academy of Paediatrics (AAP) released findings in 2012 that highlighted how organic foods benefit young children, and parents have been fans of organic food for years. The Organic Trade Association noted that 81% of families with children say that they purchase organic products because of their desire to avoid toxic and persistent pesticides and fertilizers.

I love the produce I get from the OG Store! It’s fresh and tasty and I also like the fact that there is no plastic packaging involved at all. I always look forward to my deliveries: highly recommended.

Katie Weston, Newmarket Ontario

It is not an easy task starting an organic store, and Nikita shared with me some of her difficulties.

“Finding a wholesaler that you can work with can be difficult. I really wanted to work with local farms. I spent last year reaching out to people with farms. Sometimes I went and volunteered my time so that I could learn more about the industry.

I found some farms on Facebook through the Black Toronto page. The farm was looking for volunteers, so myself; my sister, her friend and my son went out there.

When I went to pick apples for the first time, it was amazing. It was my birthday, and no one wanted to go with me. I was in heaven. I was eating off the trees. That was September 29^th, 2020, and since then I have been hooked.”

While speak with Nikita, I learned a lot about produce, things that I had never even thought of. For instance, many consumers mistake labels like “natural” and “fresh” for organic. They purchase these items thinking they are organic, and they are not. Another hot topic is Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), which is pushing many consumers over to organic foods.

Health-minded individuals are more likely to purchase organic foods because it is healthier than conventional foods. Many of them are avoiding the toxins that are found in conventional foods. I asked Nikita about this to hear what she was hearing from her customers.

“There are organic and conventional foods. Conventional produce is sprayed with pesticides. One in particular is Glyphosate. There have been cases where being exposed to Glyphosate was linked to cancer. There was a man who won a lawsuit against Monsanto. He was spraying with it daily, and developed cancer. They also use GMO. These products are used just to make the produce look good. It displays well, but the flavour is not there, and the nutrients are not there.”

This push toward more organic farming methods, fewer chemicals, and better soil management is not a new one. It began back in the 1940’s, and the push now is to return farming back to the way things used to be.

“If you have had an opportunity to try organic produce, the first thing you will notice is a difference in the taste and the flavour,” Nikita shares with me. “Organic is labour intensive. They use all the elements of nature: Beneficial bugs, plants that ward off bugs, netting, spraying the fruit with water. There is a lot more care that goes into organic.”

 Regardless of what drives people to organic foods, those who try it often become regular consumers. “It is really easy,” Nikita tells me, “all you have to do is go to the website, choose the things you want, choose if you want delivery or if you want to pick up from our Mississauga location.

 Generally, I get mangos, apples and oranges because they don’t go bad as fast. I will be farming this year, so I will have vegetables in the summer.”

 It is an exciting new venture for Nikita and her team, and an amazing opportunity for the community to support local businesses and to take a healthy approach to eating.